The Hogwarts Express is as magical in real life as it is in fiction. The train known for ferrying students to and from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the Harry Potter books and films recently took a heroic turn. The steam train known as the Jacobite was used as the Hogwarts Express in all the movies, and it still runs on a regular service around the Scottish Highlands. We learned via BBC that the conductor of the locomotive recently made an unscheduled stop to help a stranded family.
When the Cluett family’s canoe was washed away by a rising river, they weren’t left with many options for getting back to their car from the remote bothy, a small hut like structure, they were staying at. It would have been a three mile walk back to the vehicle across unsteady, boggy territory–not ideal for the husband, wife, and four children. Their canoe was the easiest way to traverse the terrain.
Without the canoe on hand, Jon Cluett called the local police and mountain rescue to see if they had any other suggestions on how to easily get to their car. The police’s unique solution was to contact the Jacobite train because it passed within about 0.2 miles of the Cluetts’ location. They arranged for the train to make a special stop, and the family barely had time to gather their belongings before the Jacobite, a.k.a. the Hogwarts Express, arrived to pick them up and take them to the next stop. Aww! Magic to the rescue!
Have you been on any form of the Hogwarts Express–the real one or the one at Wizarding World in Universal? Use Floo powder to travel to the comments and let me know.
Images: Amy Ratcliffe/Warner Bros.
Amy Ratcliffe is an Associate Editor for Nerdist. Follow her on Twitter and keep up with her Disney food adventures on Instagram.
Swish and flick for more Harry Potter stories!
- Snack on butterbeer donuts.
- Meet a pup that only responds to Harry Potter spells.
- Get sorted with a Harry Potter bath bomb.
